


Abby & The Doctor

by RodimusDoctor



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who & Related Fandoms, Doctor Who (2005), Paper Man (2009)
Genre: Crossovers & Fandom Fusions, Doctor Who References, Gen, Imaginary Friends, Paper Man References, Science Fiction
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-06
Updated: 2016-04-15
Packaged: 2018-05-31 16:31:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 13,125
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6477652
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RodimusDoctor/pseuds/RodimusDoctor
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Abby thought that her imaginary friend Christopher was just that - imaginary. When she finds a wounded man in a superhero costume that no one else can see, she realizes there is something abnormal going on in the Long Island town of Montauk. Especially when he recognizes her. And if that wasn't out of the ordinary enough, along comes a skinny, spikey-haired man in a long brown coat who identifies himself as the Doctor...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Wounded Phantom

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Bane of the Doctor: Coda](https://archiveofourown.org/works/4681415) by [RodimusDoctor](https://archiveofourown.org/users/RodimusDoctor/pseuds/RodimusDoctor). 
  * Inspired by [Bane of the Doctor: Coda](https://archiveofourown.org/works/4681415) by [RodimusDoctor](https://archiveofourown.org/users/RodimusDoctor/pseuds/RodimusDoctor). 



> This is my next Doctor Who epic, a spin-off from Bane of The Doctor and a crossover with the 2009 indie dramady Paper Man. An obscure crossover, to be sure, but then that is the fun of fanfic! I love Paper Man, and always thought that one of the main characters - Abby, played by Emma Stone - would make a great companion to the Doctor during his solitary period leading up to The End of Time. Paper Man deals with two characters who have imaginary friends. I thought, if they weren't just imaginary, then there's a Doctor Who story waiting to happen! And now it has happened.

Abby saw the man in the superhero costume on her way past Casady’s Diner. She didn’t go into Casady’s any more - it was where she used to hang out with her chickenshit ex-boyfriend, Bryce - but she had to walk past it on her way home. Bryce and his friends were inside - she’d seen them in a booth by the window - and she’d hoped to get past the diner without them noticing.

She didn’t. Bryce’s new girlfriend Lisa had pointed her out, and they’d all banged on the glass and shouted curses that the window did not manage to muffle. Abby’d pulled her jacket tighter around her and hurried on, her head down, and that was when she’d seen the trail of blood. Looking up, she saw a mid-20s man in a blue spandex suit, red boots and cape, crawling along the ground. He was the source of the blood; Abby followed him around the corner to the back of the diner.

“Hey, mister, you okay?” she asked, rushing to his side. She felt stupid for asking the question - clearly he wasn’t okay - but what else do you say to someone who’s bleeding?

The man looked up at her in surprise. His face was bruised from a severe beating. And he looked a little like Ryan Reynolds.

“You can see me?” he said, his voice a throaty wheeze.

“Yeah, sure I can,” Abby replied. “What happened to you?” She touched his arm, then yelped. He felt... different. Like electricity, but solid.

“How can you see me?” the man asked. “That’s not... wait, I know you.”

“What?” Abby said. “Look, I need to get you some help.” She looked around for something to blanket him with. It was early spring, and still frightfully cold out.

“You’re Abby,” the man said, his eyes widening. “Christopher’s friend!”

Abby’s mouth fell open, and for a moment she was unable to speak.

“How do you know about him?” she asked. And there was fear in her voice. Nobody knew about Christopher. How could they?

“I’m Captain Excellent,” the man told her. “Richard’s friend.”

“Richard? You mean Richard Dunn?” Abby said. This was getting stranger and stranger. “Look, never mind. I need to call an ambulance...”

“Check it out!”

Abby turned and saw Bryce and his buddies standing behind her.

“My crazy ex-girlfriend’s talkin’ to nobody!” Bryce went on, and his buddies laughed.

“Bryce, this man’s hurt,” Abby said, ignoring his comment. “He needs help! Do any of you guys have a phone?”

“What guy?” Bryce laughed. “Man, you’ve really flipped out this time.”

“What’re you talking about? This guy!” she said, pointing at Captain Excellent.

“There’s nobody there,” said Conrad one of Bryce’s buddies, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“You’re standing in his blood!” Abby indicated his shoe. Conrad looked down, then back up, and shrugged.

“No blood there,” he said, and chuckled.

“Nut-zo!” said Lisa, while another buddy rotated a finger beside his head.

“They can’t see me,” Excellent whispered.

“How can they not see you?” Abby said, looking from him to Bryce and his posse. “He’s right there!”

A small crowd had formed. Behind Bryce’s friends were a few curious onlookers: an old couple who happened to be passing; one of the kitchen staff, who’d come out the back door with a bag of garbage; and a skinny spikey-haired man in a long brown coat.

“You’re fuckin’ schitzo,” said Lisa.

“Yeah,” Bryce agreed. “Ain’t nobody there.”

“I disagree,” said the spikey-haired man in the brown coat. “Just because you can’t see something doesn’t mean it’s not there.”

He stepped forward, holding a gizmo out before him. It was little metal box with buttons and switches and blinking lights all over it. And a tiny little bell that went, ding.

“And there is most definitely something here,” he crouched next to Abby, his eyes on his funny little box.

“What is that?” Abby asked.

“It’s a little box that goes, ding,” the man said, and the bell dinged again. “There. Told you. What do you see?”

“There’s... a man, lying here,” Abby gestured, “bleeding. He’s wearing a blue suit and a red cape, and says his name is Captain Excellent.”

Bryce and his group exploded into laughter, and moments later the old couple joined in. The cook just shook his head, dropped his bag of trash and went back inside. Abby cringed.

“Can he see me?” Excellent asked.

“He wants to know if you can see him,” Abby said.

“No, I can’t,” the brown-coated man replied, “but my little dingy box detects him. How badly is he bleeding?”

“Pretty bad,” Abby said. “Are you a doctor?”

“Abby...” Excellent gasped.

“Come on!” Bryce said. “There’s nothing there.”

“You know, I don’t think you’re helping,” the brown-coated man turned to look at him. “I know for a fact there is someone there, someone who’s in trouble and quite possibly dying, and I’m not about to let you or anyone else get in the way of my saving him. So why don’t you and your friends push off and find something useful to do elsewhere. NOW.” He didn’t shout his last word, but Bryce recoiled as if he had.

“What-ever!” he said when he’d regained his composure. “Let’s go, guys. Leave these two schitzos to their schitzo-shit.” He turned and stomped off, and his posse followed him.

The old couple stayed. This was the most interesting thing that had happened to them all week.

“Abby, you’ve got to...” Excellent started, then gurgled and choked.

“Oh, no,” said the man in the coat, and he shook his ding-box. “No, no no no!”

‘What’s wrong?” Abby asked.

“Our friend here is fading,” the man said. “This box, it detects the presence of very specific energy signatures. It’s how I know your mister Excellent...”

“Captain...” Excellent said.

“...is really here,” the skinny man went on as if he hadn’t heard the blue-suited man, which of course he hadn’t. “But the signal’s getting weaker. He’s dying.”

“Dying?” Abby cried. “Can’t you do anything?”

“No. Nothing,” he stood, his coat billowing around him. “Something’s draining his life away and I can’t do anything! And all I’d need to save him is an old television set, the cathode kind, and a couple of radios, preferably an old World War II wireless pack. But without those things...”

“We have an old television,” said the old lady.

“You do?” the coated man spun around like a top.

“Mildred, don’t encourage them,” said the old man.

“But Stephen, we’ve still got our old set in the basement,” the old lady went on. “And you’ve still got your wireless from your RAF days!”

“Mildred...”

“Do you?” the coated man approached them rapidly, his face a beacon of hope, excitement and joy.

“Tell him, Stephen!” said Mildred.

“We, ah, have those things,” the old man said. “But...”

“That’s brilliant!” the coated man said, and his smile and enthusiasm were infectious. “Are they close?”

“We live just a short walk from here...”

“Brilliant!” the coated man said, and he spun on his heels and returned to Abby’s side. “Look, we have to move him. I’ll need your help, miss...?” He looked at her expectantly.

“Abby.”

“Hello, Abby. I’m the Doctor,” he said. “And over there are Stephen and Mildred...”

“McAdam,” Mildred said. “We’re the McAdams.”

“Stephen and Mildred McAdam, hello! This is Abby, and I’m the Doctor. Abby,” he spun around back to her, “we’re going to take Mr. Excellent here...”

“Captain!”

“...to their house. As you’re the only one who can see him, I need you to take my hand,” he stuffed his ding-box away in a coat pocket, “and place it on his shoulder.”

Abby took the Doctor’s hand and did as he’d instructed. When his fingers made contact with Captain Excellent’s body, his eyes widened in shock.

“Oh, there he is!” the Doctor felt around and found Excellent’s other shoulder, and slid his hands under them. “Now, will you take his feet? It will feel a bit strange - he’s an energy being - but I doubt he’ll be all that heavy.”

“And you can save him?” Abby said, taking Excellent’s feet in her hands.

“Oh, Abby, you just watch me!”

 

And watch she did. Abby sat in an easy chair the McAdam’s living room, nursing a cup of tea, while the spikey-haired Doctor whirled about in a manic frenzy before her. Millicent sat in the room’s other chair, next to the fireplace, while Stephen rested upon a seat he’d brought in from the dining room.

In moments the Doctor had stripped the television and wireless down to their component parts using a gadget he called a sonic screwdriver. Then he’d reassembled those components into an entirely new Frankenstein’s monster of a creation, next to the couch beside the front window where Captain Excellent lay. 

They could all see Excellent now - the Doctor said his machine cancelled out the Captain’s aura, which acted like “a living perception filter,” whatever that was. He also said that Excellent’s bleeding was symbolic - in reality, another entity had wounded him and had been draining away his life.

“My machine blocks the leak of that life energy,” the Doctor said. “It’s like a straw, except not really, but if it helps think of it like a straw between Captain Excellent here and his assailant. I’ve pinched that straw and stopped the flow. A few days’ rest and he’ll be just fine.”

“A few days?” said Stephen worriedly. “Here, I take it?”

“Yeah. Got to keep him next to this,” the Doctor patted his machine, which unexpectedly belched out a couple of slices of toast, “at least until his wound is healed. Is that toast? I don’t remember adding that. Oh, and if you have an automatic garage door, I wouldn’t use it for at least three weeks...”

“But he’s staying here?” Stephen asked again. “On our couch?”

“Well, we can’t send him away!” Millicent admonished him. “Not in the state he’s in.”

“But we’ve got the Kudrows coming over for bridge tomorrow...”

“Abby...” Captain Excellent said, and he reached out a feeble hand toward her. She took his hand - she was used to the sensation by that point - and crouched down beside him.  
“It was... Christopher,” Excellent said. “He... did this to me.”

“Christopher?” Abby said. “No, that’s... no! It couldn’t have been.”

“It was him,” Excellent said. “He said... he was hungry...” he tried to continue, but the effort was too much and he passed out again.

“Who’s Christopher?” the Doctor asked.

“Nobody!” Abby stood up quickly, then made for the door. “He’s nobody. He doesn’t exist!” And with that, she fled the house.

The Doctor watched her through the living room window. Then he flipped his sonic screwdriver, caught it, and stuffed it back into his purple blazer.

“Time I was off as well,” he said, and he gathered up his brown coat from the chair where he’d thrown it. “Please take care of your guest. He needs you.”

“Well...” said Stephen.

“Of course we will!” said Millicent. “Where will you be going?”

“To find Christopher, whoever he is,” the Doctor said, and he headed for the front door.

“You will put my wireless back together again, won’t you?” Stephen called after him. “Won’t you?”

 

Abby ran through town, no real direction in mind. This was all too much. Christopher wasn’t real.

He’d been real to her. But that was all. And even if he’d been more than that...

Abby turned onto Culkin Avenue and stopped suddenly. Standing on the next corner was a tall, blue box. It looked sort of like a phone booth; the words printed at the top said Police Public Call Box. It had doors on one side, opaque windows on all four sides, and a light on top, currently switched off.

And it hadn’t been there that morning. Abby was sure of it. She tried the door, but it was locked. It was next to Lisa Daniel’s Marine Supplies store; was it some kind of promotion? A kind of diving bell for the police? Did diving bells even exist any more?

Abby sat down next to it. She couldn’t say why, but she found the strange box oddly comforting. She sat with her back to the doors, staring north.

Which was why she didn’t see the monster approaching from the south...


	2. Confronting Christopher

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Abby encounters Christopher, her former ‘imaginary friend’ (who had [spoiler alert] hanged himself near the end of Paper Man), and the one who had attacked and fed on Captain Excellent. The Doctor arrives, and tries to reason with Christopher, with Abby stuck in the middle.

The Doctor had returned to the alley behind the diner. He crouched in front of several components he’d borrowed from Stephen, bits and pieces that he hadn’t needed for the machine. He’d hoped that, with a little jiggery-pokery, he could upgrade his ding-box to allow him to see entities like Captain Excellent as well as detect them. So far, he’d managed to access wi-fi from three years in the future and, though he wouldn’t discover it for quite a while, a garage door opener.

Yet, when he scanned the ground for Captain Excellent’s blood, he saw nothing. He simply didn’t have the right parts.

Nothing for it, then. He’d have to get the components from his workshop in the Tardis. The Doctor stood up and started back toward it. 

As he got closer, his box started to ding.

 

“Hey.”

Never had a single word made Abby jump with such fright. It was his voice, but different. Like he was speaking through a bent tube while simultaneously suffering a throat infection.

But it was definitely him.

It was Christopher.

Abby stood to face him. He stood on the sidewalk next to the blue box, his hands in his jacket pockets, staring at her with milky, dead eyes. The effect was made even more unsettling by the fact that his neck was bruised and clearly broken. His head lolled over his left shoulder, as if a puppet string holding it up had been cut.

“What’s wrong?” he asked. “Why are you never happy to see me?”

“You’re... not real!” Abby said. “And dead! You hanged yourself in my bedroom.”

“You didn’t need me any more,” Christopher said. “Turns out I still need you. I’ll always need you.”

“What... are you?” Abby asked.

“I’m your friend,” Christopher replied. “That’s all you ever wanted me to be. I always wanted to be more. And now I can be.”

He took a step toward her. She took a step back.

“You’re afraid,” Christopher said. “Why? I’m not going to hurt you, Abby. I could never hurt you.  
“But I might hurt him.”

Abby’s eyes narrowed in confusion, then she looked behind her. The Doctor walked toward her, his ding-box in his hand.

“Who are you talking to, Abby?” he asked. “Is it Christopher?”

“I don’t like him,” Christopher said, and he grabbed his hair and pulled his head up straight. “He reminds me of your creepy friend Richard. You don’t need him.”

Abby looked from one to the other.

“What’s going on?” she said.

“I’ll get rid of him,” Christopher said, and he started toward the Doctor.

“Wait!” Abby held up a hand in front of him. “He’s okay. He helped me save somebody who was... like you.”

“Captain Excellent?” Christopher said. “You guys saved him?”

“He said you hurt him,” Abby said.

The Doctor closed the distance. His little box dinged repeatedly.

“I can’t see him,” he told Abby, “but I know he’s there. And he definitely attacked the Captain. There are two distinct energy signatures coming from him, and one of them matches Captain Excellent. He fed on him, Abby.”

Abby turned to look back at Christopher.

“I really don’t like this guy,” he said, and he stepped past Abby and marched at the Doctor.

“Watch out!” Abby said. “He’s coming at you.”

“No he isn’t,” the Doctor said. He took out his sonic screwdriver, pointed it forward, and activated it. Christopher stopped abruptly, as if he’d walked into a wall. “Not as long as I broadcast a sonic wave that matches Excellent’s energy signature. And if I increase the power...” He did so, and Christopher was thrown backward off his feet, “I can repel him.”

“Whoa!” said Abby, who’d had to duck to the side to avoid getting hit by him. “But you can’t even see him!” she said incredulously.

“I know. Good, eh?” the Doctor said with a goofy grin.

“You’re taking his side?” Christopher spat at Abby as he climbed back to his feet. “I thought we were friends.”

“You nearly killed someone,” the Doctor said, advancing toward him. “Don’t you put your friend in that position. And yes,” he shook his screwdriver, “I can hear you now, too.  
“I’m going to make you an offer,” he went on. “I can help you. Leave Abby and Excellent alone, and I’ll take you somewhere where you can get what you need without hurting anyone else.”

“You can do that?” Abby said.

“Of course he can’t!” Christopher said.

“I can,” the Doctor said. “It’s a good deal, Christopher. Take it.”

“And what’ll you do if I say no?” Christopher said.

“I’ll stop you,” the Doctor told him. He said it with such confidence and finality that both Abby and Christopher were in no doubt as to his earnestness. Abby trembled involuntarily, and Christopher took a step back. He stared at the Doctor, and for a moment he looked to Abby like a miserable teenager again.

Then his free hand closed into a fist, and he smirked.

“You can try,” he said.

Then he turned and ran.

The Doctor looked disappointed, even sad. Then his eyes widened.

“Abby, did he just run away?”

“Yeah, he...”

“Which way did he go?” the Doctor said, frantic.

“That way,” she pointed, watching her imaginary friend run. “He just turned right on Kieran Road.”

“Alonz-ee!” the Doctor cried, and he took off after Christopher.

Abby stood there a moment - what the hell was going on? - then she took off after the Doctor.

 

Across the street, someone watched.

“Target spotted, heading east,” he said into a comm device. “Am in pursuit. Rally on my signal and spring the trap.”

He crossed the street, and followed.

 

Ahead, the Doctor could see the sea. What he couldn’t see was any sign of Christopher. The trail he’d followed with his ding-box had gone cold - had the boy doubled back?  
He also couldn’t see the young lady who had helped him. He’d sort of hoped she would follow him, but it appeared she had not. Shame; she’d responded well to the situation. He’d almost considered...

Almost. But he wasn’t taking companions any more. Too much heartbreak.

The Doctor adjusted the settings on the ding-box, then scanned around to find the anomalous energy reading once more. He picked up the trail again - the lad had doubled back!

“Getting careless, Doctor,” he said, and he turned and headed back the way he’d come.

 

Abby crouched behind a parked pickup truck and watched the Doctor run past. She wasn’t sure if he’d wanted her to follow him, so she’d kept herself out of sight. If she saw Christopher sneaking up on him, she could always jump out and warn him, right?

The Doctor ran into a vacant lot, scanning the area with his devices. He crouched at the lot’s centre, and pulled something out of the dirt. He examined it, then stood up quickly and looked around.

And that’s when Abby noticed the others in the lot with him. Two stepped off the sidewalk, one from either direction. Another two emerged from the back yards behind the lot.  
They carried sticks, and none of them looked friendly.

Abby stood up to shout. Before she could, someone grabbed her from behind, covered her mouth and pulled her back down.

“Don’t,” Christopher said.

Abby couldn’t see the lot any more, but the sounds she heard were nothing short of brutal. She struggled to break free, but Christopher had become inhumanly strong.

When he finally released her, Abby leapt up and ran across the street to the lot. The Doctor was gone, and so were his assailants. They hadn’t left without a trace, however; Abby found the Doctor’s ding-box on the ground, next to the item he’d picked up. It as another gadget, with a much more sleek design than the ding-box. She wondered what it was for.

That could wait. She had to find the Doctor, see if she could help him.

“Doctor?” Abby called out. She stood up and looked all around. If Christopher hadn’t held her down for so long, she might have seen which way they’d gone.

“He’s gone,” Christopher said, and Abby spun around to see him standing on the sidewalk.

“I could have helped him!”

“You would have died.”

“Which way did they go?” Abby marched over to him. “Where did they take him?”

“How should I know?” Christopher said. “I wasn’t looking. I was too busy saving you from getting killed.

“Besides,” he added, “I don’t like that guy. He’s weirder than Richard was. And dangerous.”

“He’s not dangerous. He helps people,” Abby said. “He tried to help you.”

“He wanted to destroy me,” Christopher said.

“Well, you are dangerous,” Abby said. “You hurt Captain Excellent. If I hadn’t found him, and if the Doctor hadn’t believed me, he would have died!”

Christopher smiled in a most unpleasant way.

“I just realized,” he said. “You know where he is.”

Abby’s heart froze.

“N... n... I don’t know where the Doctor took him...”

“You’re lying,” Christopher said. “I know you, Abby. Where is Captain Excellent?”

Abby took a step back.

Christopher took a step forward.

“You said you’d never hurt me,” Abby said.

“And I won’t,” Christopher replied. “Because you’re going to tell me where Excellent is.”

Abby took another step back.

Then she turned and ran. Christopher was momentarily stunned with surprise. Then he laughed. And gave chase.

“Where can you go,” he called to her as he ran, “where I can’t find you?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the spot in the 10th Doctor’s timeline where the agents of Dirge Manson kidnap him, leading directly into Bane of the Doctor Part 1.


	3. Abby, Alone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Abby runs from Christopher, and hides in a place he is unlikely to look. With plenty of time to herself, she plays around with a couple of the Doctor’s gadgets, wondering if she’ll ever see him again...

Abby ran, heading back to the centre of town. She’d heard what Christopher had shouted at her, and he was right - where could she go where he wouldn’t find her? He knew her, inside and out. Therefore, anywhere she might go to hide was a place he would know to look.

She couldn’t go home. Obviously. Ditto the beach, Camp Hero, Casady’s Diner, even Richard’s cabin was out.

Bryce’s place? Not that he’d let her in... no. Christopher would think of that, too. His girlfriend’s place? His friends? Again, they probably wouldn’t let her in.

The McAdam’s place? She wouldn’t go there, as far as Christopher knew. And they would know what she was hiding from.

It was risky. The last thing she wanted to do was lead Christopher straight to Captain Excellent. If he was still following her...

Abby stopped running and turned around. She couldn’t see him, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t out there. Christopher could be hiding, hoping she’d run to the one place he didn’t know about - the McAdams’s home.

No, that place was out, too.

Abby shivered, not just from the cold. This situation was completely outside of her frame of reference. What was she supposed to do?

Abby looked across the street and saw a couple of kids playing in Arabella’s Field. One of them hung upside down from a tree branch, giggling madly. Abby’s eyes narrowed as she watched them, and an idea formed. It was a place Christopher knew about, but would it occur to him to go there?

It was worth a shot.

 

Bryce’s buddy Dallas had a treehouse in his backyard. It wasn’t much - a box a couple of metres long and high enough for a kid sitting down - but it had four walls and a roof. It was shelter. As long as Dallas and his family didn’t come out to check. Abby climbed up and in, and sat down.

Of course, now that she was here, how was she going to pass the time? Maybe I should plan my next move, she thought. She couldn’t stay in the treehouse forever. At some point she’d have to go home and eat something.

And Christopher might be waiting for her.

Abby pulled out the Doctor’s ding-box. If she could figure out how to use it, she’d know if Christopher was near. She tried to find the on switch, but a minute or two of finger-fumbling yielded nothing. If she could see it more clearly...

Abby took the other device out of her pocket. It had a little light on top, and might be just enough to suit her purposes. She set it down on the wooden-plank floor and held the ding-box over the tiny light. Abby tried to remember how the Doctor had held it, then looked at the spots where his fingers would have been. She found a small tab on the side of the box, and clicked it with her thumb.

It started dinging. Abby started with fright and dropped the box.

The dinging continued, nonstop. It wasn’t particularly loud - Abby wasn’t too worried about attracting Dallas’ family’s attention - but she was concerned with what the dinging meant. She picked up the device with the light and pointed it at the ladder entrance, expecting to see Christopher’s face appear at any moment. Then she thought of using the ding-box - hadn’t the Doctor used it to push Christopher away? - and swapped the lighted device to her other hand so she could pick the ding-box back up. As she did so, she accidentally switched the device off and the treehouse went completely dark.

And silent.

The dinging had stopped.

Abby fumbled with the device in her hand and turned it back on.

The dinging resumed.

She switched it off.

The dinging stopped.

Abby put the unlit device down, and thought about the implications of this discovery.

The Doctor had said the ding-box detected entities like Christopher and Captain Excellent. He’d followed it to the vacant lot, where he’d found the other device, right before he’d been attacked. The ding-box detected the other device, the same way it had detected Christopher and Excellent.

The device therefore sent out the same kind of signal as the two entities.

The Doctor had been lured into a trap.

Had Christopher built the device? Hired those thugs? Not likely, Abby reasoned. So who did?

Abby doubted she’d figure that out, not without more information. Ditto the problem of what she was supposed to do about her former imaginary friend. It wasn’t as if she could go to the police.

Abby laid herself down on the wooden floor. For now she was safe, and the ding-box would tell her if Christopher was coming. She curled herself up and tried to sleep.

 

Christopher groaned in frustration and kicked a parked car. He’d followed Abby to this neighbourhood, following a signal similar to that of Captain Excellent. He’d followed that same signal to the vacant lot where he’d found Abby and saw that smug, skinny Doctor get his.

Then, the signal had seemed to come from Abby. She’d obviously realized he knew all the places she was likely to go, which was why she’d come to this area. Nice try, he’d thought as he’d closed in.

And suddenly, the signal had stopped. Just like that. He knew the direction the signal had come from, generally speaking, but that was all.

He’d lost her.

And he’d lost Excellent. He really should have finished that idiot off when he’d had the chance, but instead he’d let him crawl away.

And now he was gone, and Christopher was still hungry. Without more energy... he didn’t know what would happen to him. But he did not want to find out.

Christopher looked all around, trying to decide what to do next. He glanced at the car he’d kicked, then looked more closely. It was dented.

He’d dented it.

Before, he’d been intangible as a ghost to all except Abby. Clearly, that had changed. And if he could affect the physical world...

...perhaps he wasn’t limited to intangible entity’s energy.

Christopher decided to test that theory. He set off in the direction of Bryce’s house.

 

Morning came. Abby left Dallas’ backyard undetected and made her way home. She kept the ding-box in her hand the whole way - it dinged a few times, but not enough to worry her. It meant Christopher was around, but not necessarily nearby. The box didn’t ding at all when she made it home. She was safe for the moment.

Abby snuck back into her room, changed clothes and came down for breakfast as if she’d been at home all night. As she’d figured, her parents hadn’t even noticed she’d been gone. She exchanged a few pleasantries with them before heading out once more.

 

Abby had had time to think about the situation and she’d decided to get proactive. She’d created Christopher, after all - he was her responsibility. She’d track him down, talk to him, and try to get him to leave people alone. And if she couldn’t...

She’d run, and try to come up with a better plan. Not a genius idea, but better than waiting around for him to find her.

 

After two hours, it became apparent the search would be harder than she’d thought. The ding-box was all but useless; it had hardly made a sound. It was definitely switched on - she’d tested it with the other device - and it had let off a couple of dings, but that was all. Was it broken? How would she know?

If the box wasn’t working, she needed a new plan. If Christopher was still searching for her, then she might find him by going to the places she’d normally go to.

She began her search at the beach. And it was there that she encountered the Doctor once more.

As she’d approached the beach, there’d been a sudden wind storm and a strange wheezing sound. Then it happened again - wind and wheezing - and she could have sworn she’d seen a large blue box (like the one downtown) fading and vanishing. Curious, she’d hurried over to investigate.

The Doctor lay there in the sand. He looked not like someone who’d been savagely beaten, but someone waking up to a hangover. He still wore the suit and long brown coat, but his feet were bare.

“Oh, it’s you,” she said, walking over and crouching down beside him. “Are you okay? When those guys jumped you last night...”

“Excuse me,” the Doctor said, “but have we met?”

“It’s Abby,” she said. “We hung out yesterday, remember?”

“I’m afraid I don’t,” the Doctor said, sitting up and shaking the sand out of his hair. “There’s a lot I don’t remember, actually. I don’t know how I got here, or even where here is. Or what happened to my shoes.  
“Abby,” he looked directly at her, “did you get the sense that we’d gotten along?”

“Well, yeah, we did,” Abby told him. “They must’ve hit your head really hard.”

“They must have, yes,” said the Doctor, probing his head with his fingers. “I don’t remember them, either, but perhaps that’s for the best.”

“Well, this is Montauk, Long Island,” Abby shivered as she stood back up. “I’m cold. I’m going home. You want to come over? I’ll make soup.”

“You know what, Abby?” the Doctor cracked a huge grin. “I’d love some soup!”

She extended a hand and helped him up, and together they left the beach.

“That... thing we talked about yesterday?” Abby said. “You can still help me with that, right?”

“I don’t see why not,” the Doctor told her. “If I thought I could before, I should still be able to now. You’ll have to refresh my memory, though.  
“And a couple of things before soup-time. Have you seen a large wooden blue box anywhere about? And - and this is quite possibly the most important thing - have you got a spare pair of shoes?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is where the story synchs up with Paper Doctor, from Bane of the Doctor: Coda. I’ve presented the same scene, this time from Abby’s point of view. From here on out there will be no further interruptions from my other stories!


	4. Soup With The Alien

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Abby fills the Doctor in on the events of the previous day while they have some yummy soup. Then they go in search of Christopher, who has his own surprise for them...

Back at her home, two hot bowls of soup between them, Abby brought the Doctor back up to speed. He listened intently, taking in her story and reconciling it with his fractured memory of the events. He had no recollection of being set upon by four thugs, nor of anything that had happened to him between then and when he’d woken up on the beach. He took Abby’s word for it; after all, she had two pieces of very compelling evidence.

“I vaguely recall making this,” the Doctor said, examining the ding-box. “I detected a strange Seigilbryld-wave pattern coming from this town, and I made this to help me pinpoint it when I landed.”

“Landed?” Abby asked. “You came by boat?”

“Not exactly,” the Doctor replied, and he turned his attention to the other device. “I have something like a ship, but it doesn’t travel on water. Well, it could, it’ll float... I found this just before I was attacked?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah,” Abby replied. “It sends out a signal that your thing detects. I figured those guys left it where you found it to set a trap for you.”

“You may be right,” the Doctor said. There were numerous implications, but somehow he knew the device - and the ones who’d left it - were no longer a concern. He stuffed it in his coat pocket and took a gulp of soup.

“Ah, this is brilliant,” he said. “Just what I needed. Well, that and a cup of tea. Actually, forget the tea! I have a new favourite.”

Abby gushed. It was nice to have her talents recognized.

“You remind me of my friend Richard,” she said. “He was this writer who came here a few weeks ago to write a book about this bird, the last of its kind.”

The Doctor looked up at her with an expression that seemed sad. Abby felt compelled to keep talking, so she did.

“This bird, kind of like a chicken, that lived around here, before they all went extinct. Richard said he was like that bird, the only child of an only child, the last of his bloodline. I think it made him pretty sad. Don’t know if he finished the book... are you okay?” she added. The Doctor was definitely sad now. And a little bit wistful.

“Yeah, I’m okay,” he replied. “I’m always okay.”

“It’s just, you looked...”

“Tell me about Christopher,” the Doctor said, all business. “Who is he? To you?”

“I dunno,” she replied. “He’s like a friend. An imaginary friend. I think I made him up to help me cope, after...” She paused, then continued. “He was in love with me, made me feel like someone thought I was special. What does that say about me?”

“Only that you needed something you weren’t getting anywhere else,” the Doctor told her. “Please go on.”

“Okay,” Abby said. “Anyway, when I made friends with Richard... I guess I didn’t need Christopher any more. I came home and found he’d hanged himself in my bedroom. That was the last time I saw him. Well, before yesterday.”

“Ahh...” the Doctor said. “That might explain a few things...  
“Abby, here’s what I think’s been going on. Imaginary friends. Lots of people claim to have had one, at least when they were little. And not just on Earth. Most races the universe over experience this phenomenon of imaginary friends. I always thought they were just that - imaginary - but what if some of them are not? What if there are creatures out there who act like a made-up friend? Your Christopher and Captain Excellent would seem to be two such creatures.”

Abby stared blankly at him for a moment. A few of the words the Doctor had spoken had stuck in her mind: most races the universe over...

“They’re... aliens?”

“Possibly,” the Doctor replied. “To me, certainly. But it’s entirely possible these entities are native to Earth. So possibly not alien to you.”

Abby blinked.

“Why would they be alien to you,” she asked, “if they aren’t alien to me?”

The Doctor looked up at her. Smiled.

“Why do you think?” he said.

Abby stared at him.

“You’re... an alien,” she said.

“Is it that hard to believe?” the Doctor asked. “You accept there are entities that pose as imaginary friends...”

“I’ve seen them,” Abby said.

“You’ve seen me.”

“You look normal.”

The Doctor paused.

“You know,” he said, “I don’t believe anyone’s ever said that to me. And I’ve lived a very long time. Here,” he extended a hand, palm up. “Feel my pulse.”

“...why?” Abby asked.

“Proof. Well, proof that I’m not human.”

Abby took his hand. Felt his wrist. Touched his pulse.

A double pulse.

“Two hearts,” he told her.

Abby took her hands back. Stared at him some more.

“Okay,” she said.

“Okay,” said the Doctor.

“So, you’re some kind of... space cop?”

“Not really,” the Doctor replied. “I’m a traveler. Occasionally I find trouble. Well, actually most times I find trouble. Or it finds me. Occasionally I go looking. But when I find trouble, I do my best to stop it.  
“Right now, I want to stop Christopher from hurting anyone else. As you saw yesterday... was it only yesterday? Not many people believe he exists. You and me, really. And only you can see him. Which means we’re the only ones who can do anything about it.”

“And the McAdams,” Abby reminded him.

“Who? Oh yes, of course,” the Doctor rubbed his head, then finished his bowl of soup.

“You really must’ve been hit hard,” Abby said.

The Doctor looked up, and the fear in his eyes was scary. It lasted only a moment, but it seemed to shake him up badly.

“I wish I knew,” he said.

“More soup?” Abby asked.

“Oh yes please,” the Doctor replied.

 

When the pot was empty and the dishes had been cleaned, the Doctor and Abby set out to find Christopher. Abby gave him his two gadgets back, and the Doctor fiddled with them with his sonic screwdriver while they walked.

Abby had told him how the ding-box had stopped working that morning, and was not surprised the Doctor had a theory.

“Christopher had been all full up on Captain Excellent’s energy,” he said. “But no longer. Which means either he’s processed all of Excellent’s energy, or he’s found a way to mask it. Either way, I’m re-calibrating the box to detect a less specific brand of Seigilbryld-wave energy.”

“Okay,” Abby replied. “Doctor, when I told you that Christopher killed himself, you acted like that was really important.”

“It is,” the Doctor replied. “I don’t think an entity like him can die. At least not in the conventional sense. You say he hanged himself. But it didn’t kill him. Instead it made him into something else. Something that needs to feed on others of his kind to stay alive.”

“He’s gotta be pretty hungry, then,” Abby said. “If he hasn’t found Captain Excellent yet. You don’t think he will, do you?”

“I doubt it,” the Doctor replied, then paused to make a few minute adjustments to the ding-box. “Unless he’s searching every house, and it may come to that, but I’m far more worried he’ll find another food source.”

“Another entity?”

“Perhaps. But it’s possible he might go back to feeding on humans. There!” he held out the ding-box triumphantly. “Now we just need to pick up his scent, so to speak.”

“Back up,” Abby said, rushing to keep up as the Doctor strode off at a brisk pace. “You think he might feed on people? Again?”

“Well, before his accident,” the Doctor said, “he was feeding on you.”

“What?” Abby cried. “No he wasn’t. I’d have noticed.”

“It was your psychic energy, most likely. Stuff you’re giving off all the time. You have a thought, it leaves your head, and where does it go? Just out there, into the world. Except in your case, and your friend Richard’s, that stuff was feeding your friend. It’s what allowed him to take the form you saw. You needed a companion who was devoted to you, and Richard needed a hero, so your entities picked up on that and took their forms accordingly.  
“It wouldn’t have hurt you, Abby. What Christopher ate, you wouldn’t have missed. But now that he has changed... well, he probably fed on Excellent because it was familiar energy. He could sense he wasn’t what he’d been, and that Excellent’s life force might restore him. But now that he’s had time to get used to his new existence...”

“...he could eat people?” Abby said. “We’ve got to find him.”

“And we will,” the Doctor told her. Then he stopped abruptly and waved the ding-box around. “Eventually.”

They wandered around, trying to pick up Christopher’s trail. They got a ding here and there, but not enough to pinpoint a direction.

They took a coffee break. Abby carried two steaming cups out from White’s Drug & Department Store and walked over to a nearby bench. The Doctor sat there, still fiddling with his gadgets while trying to formulate a new plan.

"Thank you," the Doctor said, accepting one of the cups.

"Not as good as my soup, right?" Abby said.

"Not even close!" the Doctor replied.

"Any ideas?" Abby sat down next to him.

“Not yet,” the Doctor replied. “You know, it would be really helpful if we could make him come to us.”

Abby thought about that and sipped her coffee. Then her eyes widened.

“Doctor,” she said, “that other device, the lure. It sends out a signal like Captain Excellent’s energy signature, right?”

“Yes it does,” the Doctor said.

“Well, if Chris is still looking for the Captain, and he can sense that... silly wave energy...”

“Seigilbryld -wave,” the Doctor corrected.

“If we turn the lure on, won’t he be drawn to it? The way you were?”

The Doctor’s eyes widened.

“Abby! That’s brilliant!” he said, and he leapt to his feet, full of excitement. “Ha-ha! We CAN make him come to us!”

“Well, go on, turn it on,” Abby said, feeding on the Doctor’s enthusiasm.

“Not here,” he replied. “I want him away from others if we can help it. Somewhere isolated.”

“How about Camp Hero?” Abby suggested. “It’s on the shore. That way,” she pointed in the direction of a distant lighthouse. “Nobody will be there, not this time of year.”

“Allonz-ee,” the Doctor said, and off they allonz-eed.

 

Christopher woke up, aware of a signal beckoning him. It was the same signal he’d followed yesterday when he’d chased Abby. The same energy signature of Captain Excellent.

He thought about it, and smiled. Was that really Captain Excellent he could sense? Or was it Abby? She’d done something to give off that signal he’d followed - probably used those gizmos that Doctor freak had left behind - so maybe she was trying to lure him to her.

She probably wanted to talk, negotiate a truce or something.

God, how he missed talking to her. She was his whole world...

But he wouldn’t let that stop him. He’d go to her, listen to her talk. And then she’d tell him where Captain Excellent was. He couldn’t hurt her. He realized that. His new friends, however, were another matter.

“Get up, all of you!” he shouted. “We got a date.”

 

Abby and the Doctor picked a spot near the lighthouse at Camp Hero to wait. The Doctor activated the lure, set it down by his feet, then took out his ding-box and his sonic screwdriver.

“I once fought a monster in a lighthouse very much like that one,” he said, indicating the structure. “Fang Rock, the place was called.”

“Cool,” Abby said. She wasn’t sure she 100% believed him, but he spoke with such enthusiasm and earnestness. He certainly believed he was an alien who’d fought a monster in a lighthouse at a place called Fang Rock. He might just be delusional, but then again, could she honestly say that she wasn’t?

That thought worried her.

“Doctor?” she said. “When I was telling you about my friend Richard, you looked really sad. And when I asked you about it you avoided the question. Why?”

She didn’t think he would answer, and for about a minute he stared off into space.

“I’m the last of my kind, Abby,” he said. “There used to be so many of us. Time Lords, I mean. From the planet Gallifrey, my home. But not any more.”

Abby worried a bit more. The Doctor did remind her of Richard - maybe she was imagining him? She hadn’t had reason to question her sanity in a long time, not since...

“What happened?” she asked.

“There was a war,” the Doctor told her. “The Last Great Time War, fought all across the cosmos and all through time. My people fought the Daleks, the deadliest race in the universe. The final battle brought Gallifrey to the brink of destruction. And then, I pushed it over the edge.”

“You?” Abby said. The Doctor didn’t look like the warrior type. “What did you do?”

“I ended it,” he said simply. “In one fell swoop I committed double-genocide. Saved the universe - my one consolation. And it was the only choice left to me.” He turned and looked at her then, and the sorrow in his eyes brought tears to her own. “And I live with it, Abby. I make the choices that no one else can make, and then I live with them. And I run, every which way, helping where I can, making those decisions where I must, and then running again, trying to outrun my shame.”

Abby realized she’d taken his hand in hers. She felt for him, and yet she still saw parallels to Richard... and herself.

“Is that why you help people?” she asked. “Because of guilt?”

The Doctor didn’t answer. He looked away again.

“Because I can understand that,” she said. “I still feel responsible for...” she paused, then continued, “for the death of my sister Amy.”

The Doctor looked back at her, concerned but non-judgmental. She felt urged to continue, so she did.

“When I was 8, Amy and I...” Abby started, then stopped.

“It’s all right, you don’t have to tell me,” the Doctor said. “I’m not sure why I unloaded on you, to be quite honest. I’m... not quite myself lately. Not after... whatever it was that happened to me between today and yesterday. Which, for me, can be a very long time.”

“I want to tell you,” Abby said, and meant it. Talking would be good for her state of mind and, Delusion or not, the Doctor seemed like someone she could open up to. Plus, since she’d already told Richard that night at his cabin, it was no longer her big secret.

“We made a pact,” she said. “We were going to run into the ocean, swim away and not come back. No idea why anymore. We were so sad.  
“But I swam back,” Abby went on. “I wasn’t ready to die. I thought Amy would come back, too, but she didn’t.”

“I’m so sorry, Abby,” the Doctor said. “I understand. When I ended the Time War, I had no intention of surviving. But I lived. And I’m grateful. As painful as it’s been to live with, I’m grateful that I went on living. I met someone who brought out the best in me, helped me realize I could still be a force for good in this universe. And I keep meeting people who give me the strength to keep going. People like you, Abby. I keep living so I can meet extraordinary people like you.”

Abby smiled, blushed, and looked away. Which was why she saw the threat first.

“Doctor...” she said, tugging on his sleeve. He looked up, then snatched up the lure and rose to his feet. Abby stood with him.

Bryce was approaching. So were his friends, Conrad and Louis. And his girlfriend. And his parents. They walked toward Abby and the Doctor in an ever-widening line, cutting off all escape routes from the park.

And there was something wrong with them. They looked slightly translucent, their faces pained and sullen, their arms reaching out desperately.

“No, no, no!” the Doctor said. “This is what I was afraid of, Abby. Well, not exactly what I was afraid of. This is even worse.”

“Christopher did something to them,” Abby asked, “didn’t he?”

“Can you see him?” the Doctor asked, holding out his ding-box. Which was dinging.

“No, he’s not here,” Abby told him. “You think maybe I can’t see him any more?”

“No, you’ll always be able to see him,” the Doctor said. He looked around, taking in the positions of all members of the Bryce brigade and calculated how long he and Abby had until they arrived.

“Abby?” he said. “I’m about to ask you something. And before I do, I want you to know that I wouldn’t ask if there was any other way. I’m sorry, Abby. I’m so, so sorry, but are you up for a swim?”

Abby didn’t hesitate. She grabbed the Doctor’s free hand and together they ran down to the beach. As they approached the water, however, the ding-box’ dinging increased.

And then, a form began to emerge from the ocean in front of them. Abby thought for a horrifying second it might be her sister. It made as much sense as everything else that was going on.  
She wasn’t all that relieved when it turned out to be Christopher.

“No escape this way, Abby,” he said as he waded to shore. “Not this time.”

“There’s something very familiar about this...” the Doctor said.


	5. Christopher's Minions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Christopher surrounds the Doctor and Abby with people over whom he has complete mental control. The Doctor tries to outwit Christopher, but he’s still having emotional flashbacks to the events he can’t remember and things don’t go entirely his way. Abby begins to realize saving Montauk might all be up to her...

Abby and the Doctor stood on the beach, trapped between Christopher and his minions. At least, Abby was reasonably certain that Bryce, his friends and family had somehow become subservient to her former imaginary friend.

“What did you do to them?” she said, watching as the translucent, sullen-looking minions closed in.

“I had a bite to eat,” Christopher told her, advancing from the surf onto the wet sand. “Just a little nibble, really. And only Bryce. After that, he got hungry and bit his girlfriend,” he pointed at Lisa, “and she bit Conrad, and so on. Now they do what I say. And we’re all hungry again.”

“He absorbed life energy from them,” the Doctor explained. “Not as pure as he would have liked, I’m sure, and it had the effect of reverse trans-substantiating them.” It was clear now that he, too, could see Christopher.

“You mean, he made them more like himself?” Abby asked.

“Yeah, exactly!” the Doctor replied with a big, goofy grin. He’d been sure he’d have to explain what reverse trans-substantiation was. “And when he bit one of them,” he turned back to Christopher, his smile gone, “he passed it on like a virus, making them more like him. And you can reverse it, can’t you Christopher?”

“I could,” he replied, “but I’m not going to. In fact, I think I’ll make a new one out of you, Doctor.”

“I gave you a chance, Christopher,” the Doctor took the lure out of his pocket. “Release them. Give them their lives back, and my offer’s still on the table.”

“Or what?” Christopher shot back. “You’ll lure me someplace else?”

The minions closed in. Abby looked from them to the Doctor - did he have a plan?

“Funny thing about this, and the signal it sends out,” the Doctor said. “Very enticing. Irresistible, even.”

“Doctor...” Abby tugged on his sleeve.

“I wonder what would happen if I broadcast its opposite?” he said, and flipped the switch.

Christopher roared and clutched his head. A moment later, his slaves did the same thing.

“Run!” the Doctor said, tossing the lure to the ground. He took Abby’s hand, and off they ran.

“Shouldn’t we have taken that thing with us?” Abby asked.

“No point,” the Doctor told her. “It won’t last much longer.”

 

Christopher fell to his knees. The pain was intense, voiding all thoughts from his head.

And suddenly, it was over. The lure sparked, the light on top went out, and a small column of smoke rose up from its innards. Christopher snatched it up and crushed it in his hands.

“Okay, that does it!” he said as he rose back to his feet. Around him, his minions also began to rise. “Fun’s over. That Doctor has to die.”

 

“So what do we do now?” Abby asked the Doctor as they walked back into town. They had enough of a lead on their enemies that they could afford to slow down and catch their breath.

“That,” the Doctor replied, “is a good question. I had a plan. I was going to use the lure to incapacitate Christopher, and it would have worked if he hadn’t evolved himself by feeding on people. He’s a different entity than he was before. Which is different from what he was before he hanged himself. I wasn’t altogether sure we were going to get out of that, to tell the truth.”

“Now you tell me.”

“Would it have helped things if I’d told you earlier?”

“Probably not, no,” Abby conceeded. “But if that didn’t work the way you thought it would, what can we...”

“Stop here a moment,” the Doctor said, directing her over to a bench.

“Why?”

“I need to think,” the Doctor said. “And I need Christopher and his gang to catch up.”

“What?”

“As long as he’s chasing us, he isn’t attacking anyone else,” the Doctor told her, “and I want to keep it that way. He’ll be slowed down by his slaves - they didn’t look like they could move very fast - but as long as his attention’s on us...”

“Got it,” Abby said. She looked back the way they’d come, and could just make out their pursuers leaving the gates of Camp Hero and starting down the road toward them.

The Doctor slouched forward and leaned on the bench for support.

“I’m trying to look tired,” he said when Abby asked. “We want him to think we’re trying to get away, and not waiting for him.”

“How long are we gonna wait?”

“Just long enough.”

“Long enough for...?”

“For me to figure out what Christopher is,” the Doctor said, glancing at the oncoming adversary. “We know he was once like Captain Excellent, a benevolent entity made up of Seigilbryld-wave energy. Then he changed, and needed to feed on others to survive. First on Excellent, and then on people, and with it came the ability to control those he’d turned. I suspect they have a symbiotic relationship - he can feed through them.”

“So they can steal energy, then send it back to him,” Abby said. “Shit. He’s a pyramid scheme.”

“Something like that, yes,” the Doctor said. “And it might be the key to undoing him.” He stood up straight again. “Time we were moving. Come along.”

They continued their journey back to Montauk. Five minutes later, Christopher and his slaves passed the bench they’d sat upon.

“The energy flow could theoretically work both ways,” the Doctor said. “He could send energy to his minions, restore what he’d taken.”

“Would that turn them back to normal?”

“Yes, it would. But he’s not going to do that, is he? Not unless he’s feeding on something that would push that energy out, something he doesn’t want to feed on...”

The Doctor looked sideways at Abby, his expression unreadable.

“What doesn’t he want to feed on?” Abby prompted.

“Nothing,” the Doctor said. “It wouldn’t work. Forget it. We need to find a way to contain him. Then worry about his minions... we need a better word for them than minions. Minions sounds silly. You come up with something, Abby. I’ll think about Christopher.”

Abby nodded. The Doctor had seemed to be on to something, before suddenly dismissing it. Feeding Christopher what he doesn’t want... what could that mean? And why did he suddenly think it wouldn’t work?

She looked behind them. Christopher and his... whatever they were, weren’t catching up, but they weren’t falling behind, either. Abby wished she could just shove them away...

Shove...

“Doctor! Remember when you pushed Christopher back with that gizmo of yours?”

“Yes,” he said. “Yes! Abby, you’re brilliant! I was supposed to be working on that. I suppose I’ll have to come up with a name for the minions instead. Come along, we’ll need some equipment.”

“But don’t you already have what you need?”

“To push him, yes,” the Doctor replied. “But to contain him and his... they have Seigilbryld-wave energy in them... Seigilbrylds? No, something simpler, catchier... Anyway, we need a little bit more. The machines at the McAdams’s would work.”

“We can’t bring them into this!” Abby protested.

“Agreed,” said the Doctor. “So where else can we get our hands on some electronics?”

 

Christopher followed his quarries to White’s Drug and Department store. Why had they gone in there? He stood on the street, thinking about it, and his slaves shuffled restlessly around him.

Christopher’s eyes narrowed. He remembered how good the Doctor was with gadgets...

“Circle the store, break in and find them,” he told his slaves. “And cut the power first.”

 

Geoff White stood at the counter, one hand on his cash register, staring at the skinny, spikey-haired stranger who’d come in with Abby. The man had called himself the Doctor, and had proceeded to politely but insistently make the most ridiculous request Geoff had ever heard in all fifty-two years of his retail experience.

“Um... no,” he said.

“I’ll give them right back, good as new,” the spikey-haired Doctor said, waving his official Drug Store Inspector badge at him. “It’s an emergency. Lives are at stake!”

“You know this guy, Abby?” Geoff asked her. “Well, you can tell him to take his fake ID and get out of my store before I throw him out.”

“Fake? Fake?!?” said the Doctor.

“Come on,” Abby took his arm and led him away from the counter.

“This usually works,” the Doctor told her, stuffing his psychic paper back in his pocket.

“Mr. White’s kind of paranoid,” Abby told him. “He never believes the older kids when they say they’re old enough for cigarettes and booze. Even when they flash their drivers’ licenses at him.”

“We have to leave,” the Doctor led her toward the front entrance. “Dangerous to lead Christopher here if we can’t...”

He stopped, and thrust out an arm to protect Abby.

Bryce and Lisa stood just outside the front doors.

And then the lights went out.

“Change of plan,” the Doctor said, and he took Abby’s hand and led her toward the back. As they ran, he snatched up a flashlight and some batteries from the shelves and handed them to her.  
“Make this work,” he said. “I’ll be right back.”

“Doctor!” Abby cried as he vanished around an aisle. Abby swore, then she ripped open the pack of batteries and loaded the flashlight.

When she flicked it on, the Doctor was back. In his arms he carried all the stereo equipment he’d asked Geoff White for at the front counter.

“Take these,” he handed her a couple of speakers. “Put them on the aisle - one on each side, facing in.” Abby did so, and the Doctor did likewise with his own set of speakers. Wires from each speaker fed back into the main stereo, and the ding-box sat next to it.

“Nearly there,” the Doctor said, and he worked on the stereo with his sonic screwdriver.

A scream rang out - Mr. White. Christopher’s bunch had got him.

“Nothing we can do for him,” the Doctor said with regret in his voice. “There’s a man and a child three aisles over. We can still save them.”

“What if they find those people?” Abby asked. She had seen Ben Mulroney and his son Justin browsing when they’d come in.

“They won’t,” the Doctor reassured her.

“How can you be sure?”

“Because they’re not waving a flashlight around,” the Doctor said. “Also, they aren’t talking like we are. We’re an unmissable target!”

“What?!?” Abby cried.

“Yes, that should do it,” the Doctor made one last adjustment, then rose to his feet. “Well, don’t be shy. Come on!”

Bryce and Lisa shuffled into the aisle. Christopher was behind them. Abby spun around and saw Bryce’s parents blocking the other end.

They were trapped.

 

The Doctor stood ready, sonic screwdriver in hand. This was a tactically dangerous plan - already the shopkeeper had fallen, and Abby was vulnerable. If this didn’t work...

When the lights had gone out, he’d experienced a moment of pure terror. Something in his mind - from his missing memories - had been triggered, and it had shaken him up. He’d kept going because people needed saving, but his ability to cope had been seriously impaired.

Stay strong, Doctor, he told himself. Abby’s counting on you. And she’s absolutely brilliant. No matter what, she’s getting out alive.

“Nice machine,” Christopher said, indicating the stereo. “Smash that machine,” he said, and his slaves advanced.

“Oh no you don’t,” the Doctor said, flicking his screwdriver on. The stereo activated, and the aisle became a sonic prison. Christopher and his minions clutched at their heads and cried out, and a few fell to their knees.

Christopher remained standing.

“Nice try, Doctor,” he said, and forced himself to take a step forward, “but it won’t stop me.”

“I can increase the volume,” the Doctor told him, and did so. Christopher and his minions screamed, and this time all of them fell to the floor.

“Understood?” the Doctor turned the volume back down. “I can do that again, and I can make it a lot louder. I can make it loud enough to unravel you.”

“But you won’t!” Christopher said. “If you do, all my guys will die with me.”

“Release them,” the Doctor said. “Give them their energy back, and I’ll let you leave this town.”

“I’m not going to do that,” Christopher stood back up. “And you’re not going to destroy me.”

“But I can hurt you.” The volume increased, and Christopher fell again.

“Doctor!” Abby clutched his arm and pointed. “You’re killing them.”

It was true. Blood ran from the ears and noses of Bryce, his parents and Lisa. They couldn’t take much more.

“Are you willing to torture us to death?” Christopher shouted.

“Torture...” the Doctor faltered, terror hitting his mind again. He staggered back into Abby, struggling to keep hold of his screwdriver.

Christopher pushed his advantage.

“I told you he was dangerous, Abby!” he said. “He’ll let your ex boyfriend die. But don’t freak out, I’ve still got your back.”

And then the Doctor realized Christopher’s slaves weren’t all accounted for. And while those within his sonic trap were held fast, there was no such restriction on the ones outside it.

Hands smashed through the aisle wall beside Abby and grabbed her. She screamed as Mr. White, now a minion, pulled her out through the hole.

“Abby!” the Doctor cried, and he leapt through the aisle after her. He knocked Abby out of Mr. White’s hands and grappled with him as they fell to the floor.

Christopher forced himself a step closer to the stereo, then another. With a howl of rage and pain, he raised a foot and stomped down hard. The Doctor’s machine was crushed, and the pain stopped instantly.

“Get the Doctor!” he cried, and he stepped through the hole in the aisle while his minions went around.

Still wrestling with the store owner, the Doctor looked up and saw what was happening. His eyes darted over to Abby, and saw she knew it, too.

“Run, Abby!” he shouted, before Christopher and Bryce grabbed him by the arms and pulled him off of Mr. White.

“Doctor!” Abby cried, watching as two minions walked right past her to help restrain the Time Lord.

“Go! Save yourself,” the Doctor said.

And then Christopher took the Doctor’s face in his hands and forced their mouths together. To Abby’s horror, the Doctor’s struggling quickly ceased.

She was moving before she’d even realized she’d gotten up. She made it to the main entrance and out to the street, and kept on running.

Tears streamed down her face. The Doctor was dead. Worse, he was one of Christopher’s slaves. They’d failed - Christopher would continue consuming the people of Montauk, and then the rest of Long Island, and beyond. He’d probably start with Ben Mulroney and Justin; she hadn’t even tried to save them.

All she could do was run and hide. And there was only one place in town that Christopher didn’t know about.

Abby kept on running, toward the McAdam’s, and Captain Excellent.


	6. Abby and Excellent, Heroes of Montauk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Doctor is Christopher’s slave. Abby turns to the McAdams and Captain Excellent for help. The final confrontation with her imaginary friend is coming. What must Abby do to save Montauk? And will Captain Excellent get one more chance to be a hero?

Stephen and Millicent McAdam sat in separate armchairs, nodding and listening as Abby filled them in. Captain Excellent also paid attention; he’d raised himself up to a sitting position on the couch, his cape wrapped around him like a blanket. While the older couple could barely make heads or tails of Abby’s story, Excellent understood all too well.

“And... will they come here?” Stephen asked when Abby had finished.

“I don’t think so,” she replied. “They don’t know about this place, and none of them followed me.”

“And that machine is still running,” Millicent added, indicating the device beside the couch. “The Doctor said it would hide the Captain, didn’t he?”

“Yeah,” Excellent said. “We should be safe for now. The question is, what are we going to do about Christopher?”

“Why do we have to do anything?” Millicent asked. “This is a job for... well, the police.”

“They can’t stop him,” Excellent said.

“They probably can’t even see him,” Abby added. “The Doctor was the only one who could help. He does this kind of stuff all the time. Or, he did. He’s just one of Christopher’s slaves now.”

“Did he say anything that might help us?” Stephen asked.

“He said we could stop Christopher if we fed him what he doesn’t want,” Abby said. “But then he said that wouldn’t work. Any idea what he might’ve meant?”

Captain Excellent stared at her for a moment, then another.

“No,” he said at last. “No idea at all.”

“Well, great!” Abby threw her hands up. “What are we supposed to do?”

“When I was a soldier,” Stephen said, “so very long ago, we had to learn when to stand and fight, when to run, and when to hunker down and wait for reinforcements.”

“There are no reinforcements,” Abby pointed out.

“And we can’t fight them,” Captain Excellent added.

“Then we run,” Millicent said. “We have a car in the garage...”

“No,” Stephen said. “Our friend the Captain here needs these machines to recover, and I don’t have the first clue how to fix them if they break. And look at the thing. I’m scared to touch it without accidentally breaking it. And we’re not leaving him.”

“But Stephen...”

“You don’t leave a man behind,” Stephen said. “My commanding officer taught me that. A captain like yourself,” he added to Excellent. “Harkness, his name was...”

“Forget your captain!” Excellent said. “You three run. I’ll stay here.”

“Millicent, take Abby and get driving,” Stephen said. “I’m staying.”

“I’m staying too,” Abby said. “This is my responsibility. It’s my fault Christopher exists.”

“It really isn’t,” Captain Excellent told her. “He needed to bond with someone, just like I did. You gave him shape, a name, just like Richard did for me, but his actions are his actions, Abby. Not yours.”

“I’m still staying,” Abby said.

“If anyone’s at fault here, it’s me,” Excellent told them. “I met him, that night after the party, after you and Richard had gone to sleep. He told me you didn’t really need him any more, and I told him to get out while he could. I guess he took that the wrong way.”

“That doesn’t make him your fault,” Abby said.

“Exactly,” Excellent said. “He’s not yours either. So get out of here with the McAdams while you still...”

A brick smashed through the window and landed on the sofa. A piece of paper was taped to it, with a note that read: Found You.

“Oh dear,” said Millicent.

Abby rushed to the window and looked out. Christopher stood there in the street with his slaves, and the Doctor was one of them.

“I didn’t know where you’d hid Captain Excellent,” Christopher called, “but he did.” He patted the Doctor’s shoulder.

Abby groaned. She should have thought of that.

“And don’t think of running out the back,” he went on, and there were several loud thumps on the rear of the house. “I’ve got it covered.”

“What do you want?” Abby shouted.

“You tell me, Abby,” Christopher replied. “I’m your creation, remember?”

“Just leave us alone!”

“I will,” Christopher told her. “I don’t want to hurt you, Abby. You’re my friend. I don’t even care about that old couple in there, or even this town.

“Wanna know why?” he patted the Doctor’s shoulder again. “This guy’s a Time Lord! I know, right? Turns out he wasn’t kidding when he said he could take me anywhere in the universe. And he will. I’m gonna leave this place behind and go wherever - whenever - I want!

“But there’s one more thing I need before I go, Abby. Give me Captain Excellent.”

“No way!” Abby shouted. “You’ll kill him.”

“I’ll kill everyone else in Long Island if you don’t,” Christopher replied. “I’ll even go after your friend Richard Dunn. And I’ll go back in time, kill him before you ever met him. Heck, I’ll kill his grandparents! He won’t even have existed!”

Abby sank to the floor. The implications of Christopher’s threats were off the scale, and she had a good imagination. The possibilities threatened to tear her mind apart.

“Young man, sit down!” Stephen said.

“Where do you think you’re going?” added Millicent.

Abby stood and turned around. Captain Excellent had stood up, and was heading to the front door.

“Captain, no!” Abby said, rushing forward. She tried to grab his arm, but the tingling she felt on contact with him was somehow worse than before.

Captain Excellent stopped at the doorway and leaned upon it for a moment, and sighed. Then he turned to face the people who’d protected him.

“When the world is in peril,” he said. “When evil surrounds you... When danger is lurking... who do you call?”

Abby, Stephen and Millicent stared blankly back at him. Then Abby got it.

“Captain Excellent,” she said, before the lump could form in her throat.

The Captain smiled.

“One last time,” he said.

Then he opened the door and stepped out.

“We should get to the car,” Millicent said. “In case your Christopher doesn’t keep his word.”

“He’s not my Christopher!” Abby said crossly, because she knew he was. He may have been an entity that fed on human mental energy, but the persona of Christopher was very much her creation.

“Well, we’d best get a move on anyway,” Stephen said, taking her by the arm. “He may not want to hurt you, but Millie and I are still fair game.”

“What...?”

“Now, child!” he snapped. “Captain Excellent is giving his life so that we can escape, and I won’t let his sacrifice be in vain!”

“No,” Abby stood firm. “Stephen, what did you just say?”

 

Captain Excellent walked slowly toward Christopher and his slaves, trying not to notice the young lad’s smug sneer. He could not look away when Christopher licked his lips, however. As heroic last stands went, this was going to suck.

He cast a glance at the Doctor, the strange man in the coat who hadn’t been able to see him at first but had still cared. He’d intervened and saved his life because it was the right thing to do. Because he was a hero.

Just like Abby.

The thought made him feel better. No matter what happened to him, Abby was worth it.

“Glad you could make it, Excellent!” Christopher said.

“Captain Excellent,” he corrected.

“Like it matters.”

“It does to me,” Excellent said. “Are you really going to keep your word and leave this town in peace?”

“And if I’m not? What’re you gonna do, sing your mantra at me? In brightest day, in darkest night...”

“That’s not how it goes,” Captain Excellent said, and he strode forward and punched him in the face. He was still very weak, and the blow had little strength. Nevertheless, Christopher was so surprised he fell on his ass.

Captain Excellent fell to his knees. The punch had cost him all his remaining strength. He’d probably only qualify as a snack to Christopher now. He hoped the bastard choked on him.

The Doctor and Bryce grabbed the Captain’s arms and hauled him to his feet. They opened their mouths to bite, but Christopher threw up a hand to stop them.

“Oh no,” he said as he rose to his feet. “This one is mine.”

“And you’re mine, Christopher.”

He looked back at the house and saw Abby walking toward him. There was a resolve to her, a determination, he hadn’t seen in her eyes before.

It made him nervous.

“Not any more, I’m not,” he said, taking a step backwards. “I’m free of you, now. I eat him,” he smacked Captain Excellent’s face, “and I’ll be free from everything!”

“I can’t let you do that, Christopher,” Abby said, placing herself between the Captain and him. “It’s time. For both of us.”

“What are you doing?” Christopher backed up another step. “I don’t want to hurt you, Abby...”

“You already have,” she replied. She stepped forward and took both his hands in hers. “And I hurt you. I’m sorry, Christopher. You’ve always been there for me. Let me be here for you now.”

“I’m... scared,” Christopher said.

“Me too,” Abby told him, and she tugged him in closer. “But we belong together.”

“You could die,” he said, moving closer.

“So could you. But you want this, Christopher. Even if you don’t want me.”

“Yes,” he admitted.

“Together?” she asked.

“Together,” he confirmed.

They embraced one another. Christopher began to feed on her. And then, Abby began to feed on him.

“Abby!” Millicent cried from her front door.

“Abby, no...” Captain Excellent whispered.

The slaves shuddered. The Doctor and Bryce dropped Captain Excellent, then fell to their knees with the others.

Christopher and Abby continued to feed.

“Uhh... wha...?” said Bryce.

“What’s going on?” said Lisa.

“Abby?” the Doctor said, shaking his head to clear it. “Abby, no!”

“What’s... happening?” Captain Excellent asked him.

“They’re feeding on each other!” the Doctor said. “It will destroy Christopher, but it will also kill Abby. They’ll keep devouring each other’s energy in a continuous loop until there’s nothing left! Nothing can stop it, unless...” He stood, and started towards them.

“Doctor!” Captain Excellent grabbed his coat and pulled him off-balance. He didn’t know exactly what the Doctor planned to do, but he knew that tone of voice. It was the voice of a hero. About to sacrifice himself.

The Doctor fell backward, and Excellent lunged forward. He got between Abby and Christopher...

There was a flash of light. Abby collapsed to the ground, unconscious. Christopher and Captain Excellent...

...were gone.

It was over.


	7. The Doctor's Departure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Doctor tries to leave without saying goodbye, but Abby won’t let him. Has the Doctor found a new companion?

Abby woke up on the McKay’s couch. She felt groggy and nauseous, but was otherwise none the worse for wear.

“Oh, good, you’re up!” Millicent said. She sat on the chair across from Abby, an extremely relieved look on her face. “The Doctor said you’d be all right, but we did worry. Stephen, bring the tea in, would you?”

“The Doctor... where is he?” Abby asked.

“He just left, dear,” Millicent said. “He said to say goodbye, that he thought you were very brave, and where are you going?”

Abby was already out the front door.

“Well,” Stephen said as he set the tea tray down. “Spirited girl, isn’t she?”

“Oh yes, quite,” Millicent replied, slightly annoyed Abby had left the door open in her haste.

“She reminds me of someone I met fifty-odd years ago, overseas.”

“Does she? Who might that...” she paused, seeing the look her husband was giving her. “Yes, I was, wasn’t I, you old smoothie.”

 

Abby ran, guided by instinct. She knew, somehow, where the Doctor was going. And that, if she wasn’t quick, he’d be gone.

She retraced her steps from the day before, and wound up back at the blue police box just as the Doctor was stepping inside.

“Doctor!” Abby shouted, sprinting the last block. “Wait!”

The Doctor stopped and turned around.

“Weren’t you going to say goodbye, at least?”

“I don’t like goodbyes,” the Doctor said. “And...” he paused, “I was afraid you’d want to come with me.”

“Oh,” Abby said. The thought hadn’t occurred to her, but now that the Doctor had vocalized it... “Why not?”

The Doctor sighed. It was Lady Christina all over again.

“Because I can’t, Abby,” he said. “Another time I’d have said yes right away. But lately... I need to be alone.”

“Okay,” she said. “I mean, if you don’t want me...”

“It’s not that,” the Doctor told her. “You were fantastic, Abby. You saved my life, and you saved the town. And quite possibly the world.”

“But not Captain Excellent,” she said. Or Christopher, she thought.

“He made his choice,” the Doctor said. “One of you would have died stopping Christopher. He decided it shouldn’t be you.”

And so did you, Abby realized. He’d known she could save everyone by giving herself up, and he’d realized what it would have cost her. The Doctor had nearly died to keep her safe.  
Captain Excellent had also figured it out. Abby was sure of it.

“Are they really gone?” she asked. “For good?”

“Yes, Abby,” the Doctor said. Then he frowned. “Well, then again, they were both energy entities, and energy can’t be created or destroyed, only converted... I don’t know, to tell you the truth. Here,” he reached into his coat pocket and pulled out the ding-box. “You take this,” he tossed it to her, “and if they are still around, in some form or another, you can find them.”

“Oh, wow,” Abby said, looking down at the gizmo in her hands. “Thanks, Doctor!” she looked up just in time to see the blue box doors close behind him. A moment later the light on top began flashing, and the box let off a strange wheezing noise. A wind storm whipped up...

...and the box faded away to nothing. The wheezing noise lingered, growing fainter and fainter until it too was gone.

Abby stared at the spot where the Tardis had been. Blinked a couple of times.

“...okay,” she said. “Sure, why not?”

She turned around and walked home.

 

That night, while Abby slept in her bed, the gizmo on her bedside table let off a soft ding...

 

The End

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that's my unofficial sequel to Paper Man, featuring the Doctor! And my official spin-off from Bane of the Doctor. I hope you enjoyed it. And did you notice how I left the door slightly ajar at the end? Couldn't resist!
> 
> This was a nice change of pace for me. Not as epic as Bane of the Doctor, but with perhaps a little more heart. I love that the worlds of fanfiction lend themselves to all sorts of team-ups, not all of them obvious. Paper Man/Doctor Who just seemed so natural.
> 
> There are other potential spin-off stories from Bane of the Doctor: Coda. Which one do you want me to tell next?


End file.
